


waiting so long to let you know

by shayzgirl



Category: X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Canon Compliant, Fix-It, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Love Confessions, M/M, Protective!Erik, Sick!Charles, post film
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-16
Updated: 2012-11-16
Packaged: 2017-11-18 20:18:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/564867
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shayzgirl/pseuds/shayzgirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A sick Charles let's Erik take care of him. Conversations about optimism, pessimism, and life ensue. Plus a confession or two.</p>
            </blockquote>





	waiting so long to let you know

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [thetendershark](http://thetendershark.tumblr.com/) as a belated b-day gift.

Charles was clearly off his chess game on that particular night. Erik watched him over his next turn, seeing how the other man wasn't quite focused on the board seeming to move a piece without any real thought behind it.

"Everything alright?" he asked, capturing the pawn Charles had just moved.

"Fine," Charles replied, giving no reaction to yet another lost piece.

"At this rate I'm going to win and it won't even matter since you clearly don't care."

"My mind is elsewhere. Sorry. Tired I guess."

"Perhaps we should stop for the night then."

Charles nodded, picking up his almost empty glass of bourbon and finishing it in one gulp. Erik reset the chess pieces, there'd be no point in restarting a losing game the next night, glancing at Charles occasionally who was tapping his fingers against the empty glass still in his hand.

"Good night, Charles," he said, standing once the pieces were all reset.

"Good night," Charles replied.

Erik left and headed to his room, unsure of what, if anything, he could do for Charles.

A few hours later, after barely sleeping as it was, he realized he could still sense the metal of Charles' watch in the study. Concerned considering how the night had ended, Erik climbed out of bed and tugged on a shirt before making his way down the hall back to the study.

Charles was asleep in his chair, the glass he'd been holding when Erik had left on the floor at his feet as though it'd rolled there after falling from Charles' hand. Erik sighed and walked over to, kneeling down to pick up the glass, setting it on the table.

"Charles," he said quietly, resting his hand on the other man's knee, "Charles, wake up."

Charles made a noise, sleepy and contented, but didn't wake up or move. Erik moved his hand from Charles' knee to his arm, lightly shaking it as he said his name again.

"Charles. Come on, Charles, wake up."

That time, Charles pulled away from Erik's hand, muttering something Erik didn't quite hear.

"Charles," Erik said louder than before shaking Charles by his shoulder.

"Hmmm... what?" Charles asked sleepily, barely opening his eyes.

"Wake up," Erik said.

"Why?" Charles asked, followed by a yawn.

"You fell asleep in your chair."

Charles opened his eyes more, looking around and frowning.

"So I did. Why are you up? I thought you went to bed."

"I did. Four hours ago. Why didn't you?"

Charles looked away from Erik, the frown increasing.

"Charles, what is it?"

"I... don't want to burden you."

Erik frowned.

"And what if I'm asking you to?"

Charles looked at him then, blue eyes reflecting the dim lights of the study causing Erik to realize just how pale Charles looked.

"I... Alright. It's well... I may have overdone a bit the last few days, helping the others train. I didn't want to worry anyone."

"You fell asleep in your chair."

"I know."

"I mean that worries me."

"Oh."

Erik sighed and shook his head.

"Go to bed, Charles," he said.

"Yes, all right," Charles replied.

Erik watched as Charles stood up and then immediately fell back on his chair.

"Charles," he said, kneeling down in front of the other man.

"I'm fine. Just a little dizzy. I might need some help though, if I'm not going to spend the rest of the night in my chair," Charles replied.

"This is why you need to worry people."

"Oh, I'll be fine. I just need to sleep in my own bed and I'll be better by morning."

"I'll believe you when you can stand on your own feet."

"Then I'll tell you at breakfast."

Erik shook his head and helped the other man up. Carefully, he walked Charles to his room and over to his bed.

"Not going to help me change?" Charles asked, smiling up at Erik.

"Do you need me to?" Erik asked.

"No. Thank you for your help, my friend."

"You're welcome. I'll check on you in the morning."

"I'll be fine by morning. You'll see."

"Sure you will, Charles. Good night."

"Night."

Erik left the room, closing the door behind him. Charles carefully changed out of his clothes and into his pyjamas before climbed into bed.

The next morning, Charles woke to a knock at his door.

"Good morning," Erik said, opening the door as Charles groaned.

He smiled when he saw the lump that Charles had become, buried underneath his blankets.

"I brought you tea," Erik said, setting the cup down on the nightstand.

"Don't want tea," came Charles muffled reply.

"Oh, but I thought you'd be fine by morning," Erik teased.

One of Charles' pillows was suddenly flung haphazardly towards his head. He caught it before it did and set it back down on the bed.

"Nice try, Charles."

"Go away please."

"Ever so polite."

"Please."

"Alright, but I'll be back with soup."

"Thank you."

Erik smiled, leaving Charles with his tea and his blankets before disappearing back downstairs to the kitchen.

When he returned, Charles was still buried under his blankets but the tea cup was empty.

"Charles, I brought you soup," Erik said.

Charles mumbled something but emerged from his blankets, slowly sitting up.

"You don't need to take care of me," he said, as Erik handed him the soup bowl.

"And what if I want to?"

Charles looked at him quizzically.

"Eat up."

Charles began to eat slowly, while Erik pulled a chair over and sat down.

"You don't have to watch me," Charles said.

"I said I wanted to take care of you," Erik replied.

Charles smiled and went back to eating his soup.

"You're not going to stay with me all day?" he asked.

"No. When you're done with the soup, I'll leave you to rest," Erik replied.

"What? No, but we have training."

"And I'll handle it. You need to rest."

"But…"

"No."

Charles frowned.

"Eat."

Charles glared at him and finished eating his soup before handing the bowl to Erik.

"Rest and I'll be back to check on you later," Erik said.

"Fine," Charles replied.

Erik stood up, moving the chair back to where it had been and watching from the door as Charles burrowed back under his blankets.

A couple hours later, Charles woke up alone. He frowned, as he sat up slowly and looked around. There were no new cups of tea or bowls of soup. He knew it was silly to feel disappointed, especially since he hadn't wanted to be taken care of anyway, but Erik had said he'd check on him. He wondered if maybe he'd slept through that and if he'd have to wait before Erik would check on him again. If Erik was going to check on him again. He frowned more, wondering how long he'd have to wait if Erik was coming back and afraid to go back to sleep in case he missed him again. He was thinking about getting up and going downstairs with the excuse of making a cup of tea when the door opened.

"Erik," Charles smiled.

"You're supposed to be a sleep," Erik replied.

"I was asleep but then I woke up. And you weren't here."

"Then why didn't you go back to sleep?"

"You weren't here."

"You don't need me to go to sleep, Charles."

"No, but you said you'd check on me and I thought maybe I'd slept through it."

Erik shook his head.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Okay."

"Okay?"

"I didn't think about it."

"I wasn't here."

Charles nodded, looking down at the blanket.

"Do you want me to stay?" Erik asked.

"No."

"Are you sure?"

Charles started to nod and then shrugged instead.

"I can if you want me, too."

"What about training?"

"They're perfectly capable of handling it on their own."

Charles looked over at Erik, feeling ridiculous for wanting the other man to stay but also not wanting to wake up alone again.

"It's up to you, Charles," Erik said.

"Will you stay? Please?" Charles asked.

"Yes."

Erik pulled the chair over again and sat down.

"Better?" he asked.

"No tea?" Charles asked.

"Would you like some tea?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Charles."

"Not if it involves you leaving again."

"You know I would come back. With tea even."

Charles chuckled, looking at the blanket again.

"Would you like some tea, Charles?"

"Yes, please."

Erik smiled and headed out of the room. Charles waited, pulling his blankets up higher than they'd been and tucked them against his legs. When Erik returned, Charles had closed his eyes but upon Erik entering the room he opened them again.

"Here's your tea," Erik said, handing him the cup.

"Thank you," Charles smiled.

He took the cup and took a sip, smiling again when he realized it was the second time that day that Erik has made his tea just the way he liked it.

"Thank you for taking care of me," Charles said, setting the cup down on the side table.

"You're welcome."

Erik took his seat in the chair by the bed again, grabbing one of the books off Charles' side table and flipping through it.

"I feel like I haven't properly thanked you for everything you've done," Charles said, watching the other man.

"What do you mean?" Erik asked, still looking at the book in his hands.

"Well, everything you've done to help me, to help us, after Cuba. I know it's still a long ways before we get the school up and running properly, but I'm glad I don't have to do it alone."

Erik set the book down again and looked at Charles.

"Like I would leave a bunch of mutant kids under your care. You'd turn them all into little optimists like you," he replied.

"Optimism isn't a bad thing, you know," Charles smiled.

"It can be, if there isn't also a healthy dose of pessimism there, too."

"Oh, so we're providing balance for the students, are we?"

"Haven't we always been?"

"Perhaps."

Charles smiled again, reaching for his tea.

"If it hadn't been for your optimism, I probably wouldn't have stayed that day," Erik said.

"I thought you hated my optimism?" Charles asked.

"No. I found it unfair that someone could be so optimistic despite everything they'd been through. I wanted you to be more like me after you told me about your past. I wondered why you weren't. How you'd managed to not hate the world we live in."

Charles nodded, taking sip of his tea and thinking for a moment.

"With my telepathy, I shouldn't be as optimistic as I am. I know how and what people think. I guess I fought through all of that to retain the idea that people can be good, if given the chance. That maybe their own circumstances have caused them to think the way they do. I don't judge a book by its cover, why would I judge a mind in such a way?" he asked.

"Like with me," Erik replied.

"Yes. Your mind should have scared me off, but instead I went diving in to find what was behind all that anger and pain. And what I found was greater than I could have ever expected. I wouldn't have known that if I'd stayed away."

Erik nodded.

"We can teach them and help them, but ultimately it'll be their choice how they view and face the world," Charles said.

Erik nodded. Charles finished his tea and set the cup down again.

"Come here," Charles said, "Please."

Erik stood without asking and sat on the bed next to Charles, who then lean against him and closed his eyes.

"I sometimes think that your pessimism is what caused me to doubt so much that I couldn't let you go that day. To think that we'd spent all that time together and you didn't care at all, that you'd used me, rattled me more than feeling the coin go through Shaw's head. You choosing to stay, disarming the missiles and letting them go into the ocean, gave me hope again. You let me stay optimistic."

Erik put an arm around Charles and held him.

"I think you would have stayed optimistic, even without me, but you wouldn't have trusted anyone as much as you'd trusted me."

"I wouldn't have loved anyone like I love you."

Erik looked down at Charles, who snuggled against him more.

"Hmm... I may have a fever. I didn't mean to say that out loud," Charles said, a few minutes later.

Erik rested his other hand against Charles' forehead.

"You do have a fever," he said.

"You'll forgive me later, won't you?"

"For what?"

"Hmm..."

"Get some sleep, Charles."

Charles sighed, still snuggled against Erik who pulled the blankets closer, making sure Charles was tucked in properly. Just as he was about to drift off, he felt Erik lean over and kiss the top of his head.

"I love you, too," Erik whispered, holding Charles tighter.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [The Sinking Ship (The Last Chance Remix)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2074233) by [listerinezero](https://archiveofourown.org/users/listerinezero/pseuds/listerinezero)
  * [Hope in a Canister (The Soup Remix)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2146515) by [Lefaym](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lefaym/pseuds/Lefaym)




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